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Guide To The Orchestra
The Conductor Conductor Who's that waving their hands at the front? A conductor does a lot more that just keeping time. They have to know the music inside out and back to front. They shape the music the orchestra plays and lead them during performances. Conductors came into their own when the orchestra got too big to lead itself.
Grant Llewellyn Grant Llewellyn Grant works with the BBC Symphony Orchestra and the BBC National Orchestra of Wales. Grant Llewellyn, Conductor. How did you become a conductor? Conducting just evolved naturally for me out of a whole variety of music making at school where I sang, composed, played in chamber music groups, chamber orchestras and symphony orchestras. Do you play any musical instruments? I play the cello and piano reasonably well and have been known to sing a lot. Do you have a favourite composer? Whoever I am conducting this week. So that makes it Haydn, Rachmaninov and Prokofiev. What is your favourite music to conduct? The most fun I ever have is when conducting opera, after weeks of production rehearsals, putting all the different voices together with chorus, costumes, staging, and finally orchestra. It's such a thrill when it all works. What is the best thing about conducting an orchestra? I get to choose the music. What has been the scariest moment in your career? Conducting the Argentinian national Anthem at the opening of the Rugby World cup whilst the Red Arrows flew over the Millenium Stadium in Cardiff, drowning out the music. I thought that I'd started an international incident. More BBC Conductors The BBC orchestras are lucky to have many great conductors working with them. Here are a few to find out about: Find out about Thierry Fischer Find out about Jirí Belohlávek Find out about Gianandrea Noseda Find out about Barry Wordsworth Find out about Ilan Volkov Woodwind Brass Flute Trumpet Oboe French Horn Clarinet Trombone Bassoon Tuba Strings Percussion Violin Tuned Viola Untuned Cello Timpani Double Bass Harp Keyboards Conductor LEARN AN INSTRUMENT Which instrument, which age, finding teachers, buying guide and the perils of practice Get help Get help Listening About the BBC | Help | Terms of Use | Privacy & Cookies Policy Explore the BBC
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